Lego Escape

If there's one toy that truly deserves more credit than video games (which, for the purpose of this intro, we're defining as toy-like), it's Lego. The Danish invention is fantastic fun to play with way beyond childhood, inspires creativity and skill, and possesses a certain iconic quality. You'd think for those reasons it would be perfect fodder for games content. Lego Star Wars aside, however, almost every title themed around the chunky plastic blocks has been something of a flop.

It's perhaps because the joy in playing with Lego comes from the physical interaction; whether you're clicking them together or chewing them up, those little bricks are wonderfully pleasurable to the touch.

Sadly, Lego Escape has failed in most regards to capture the magic of its inspiration. The basic premise combines the tired old Tetris model with traditional two-dimensional platforming, and while it's a solid idea in theory, and executed with occasional flair, in reality it's rather counterintuitive and repetitive to play.

You take control of a classic Lego man, and using simple directional controls you can leap and run. Somehow, your unlucky one-inch hero finds himself lost at the bottom of a Tetris-style pit, meaning his only way to reach the top is to build a tower from falling bricks so he can climb to his escape.

Block rotation is limited as the heavens rain plastic, but you can happily ignore a falling Lego brick, letting it drift off the bottom of the screen if it isn't of a suitable shape.

The strategy in the gameplay, then, comes from building a sturdy, stable tower that won't topple under your weight. Build too wide and heavy on narrow foundations and you'll quickly find yourself sinking towards the ground. While this idea of 'reverse Tetris' where you must fill an area with blocks rather than empty it is quite fresh and appealing, the problems become apparent the moment you start playing.

Quite simply, the two genres combined here do not mix well. While the thumbstick controls are perfectly competent, jumping and running amid a random tower of bricks just doesn't feel very intuitive, and as a technique for quickly moving and placing blocks it's particularly clumsy.

Throughout, Lego Escape is plagued by neat ideas that don't work well within the game's untidy structure. Power-ups such as bombs and trowels to help with your building are great in theory, but again using them effectively as you struggle to guide your plastic protagonist doesn't make for very enjoyable gaming at all.

However, visually Lego Escape is superb, and does a wonderful job of capturing the spirit and character of the brand's universe. From the backgrounds to the loading bar, nearly every component is made of real-world Lego pieces, and the game's musical score is similarly detailed and charming.

There are far worse mobile puzzlers available, and most lack the clear technical gains that an EA budget provides. However, as the gameworld and core concept presented are so enticing, Lego Escape's realisation largely disappoints, and is probably best left for die-hard Tetris fans and Lego obsessives.